Internal-combustion engine



June 12, 1923. 1,458,371

w. F. PAGEL INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Oct. 17, 1919 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 ZJz/lmwffdgel June 12, 1923. I 1,458,771

w. F. PAGEL I NTERNAL COMBUS 'I' I ON ENGINE Filed Oct, 1? 1919 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 M 565 W I W W ZJZ/Zz'am FPageZ June 12, 1923. I 1,458,771

w. F. PAGEL INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE Filed Oct. 17 9 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Amman-Milli]! I r g J 2 I @fiwumfiodi ilm June 12, 1923. 1,458,771

w. F. PAGEL I NTERNAL COMBUS T I ON ENGINE Filed Octl l 7 1919 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented June 12, 1923.

WILLIAM F. PAGEL, OF SYCAMORE, ILLINOIS.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Application filed October 17, 1919. Serial No. 331,415.

To aZZwhom itma y concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. PAGEL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Sycamore, in the county of De Kalb and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Internal- Combustion Engines, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in internal combustion engines and has special reference to improvements in two-cycle engines.

The advantages of the two cycle engine over the four cycle engine as to quantity of power developed have long been known, but the disadvantages have, so far, more than offset the advantages so that the twocycle engine-has not, so far, been developed to the extent that the four-cycle engine has.

The most pronounced advantage of the two-cycle engine is that one explosion can be obtained for each revolution of the shaft-that is, in a single acting cylinderthus practically producing double the power of a similar four-cycle engine.

In the practical operation of a two-cycle engine, it is necessary to exhaust the spent gases from the cylinder and upon substantially the same stroke fill the cylinder withfresh fuel gas. So far, this has not been perfectly accomplished, as the incoming gases in engines as heretofore constructed, mixed more or less with the exhaust gases and the-result has been a loss or decrease in effective power production, due to this practically unavoidable dilution of the fresh gases, and the loss of unburned gas with the exhaust gas. I

In the two-cycle engine of my invention, I exhaust the spent gases from the lower .end of the cylinder through a port substantially as large as the cylinder, and I simultaneously project the fresh fuel gas into the upper end of the cylinder thru an inlet port substantially as large in diameter as the cylinder, the fresh gases following the exhaust gases down the cylinder and pushing them ahead and out thru the ex haust port. The fresh gases which flow substantially axially thru the cylinder mix a minimum amount with the exhaust gases and consequently the cylinder is substantially completely scavenged and filled with into the upper end of the cylinder, at which point the ignition device is usually located.

In other words the gases are drawn into the cylinder by the piston, and then upon the upward movement of the piston the gases are pushed to the upper end of the cylinder and compressed before being ignited. This results in the heavier or richer gas being in contact with the rising piston and not in the region of the ignition device which is usually located in the upper head. On the other hand I locate the ignition device at the lower end of the cylinder and push or compress the gases downwardly toward the bottom 'orlower end of the cylinder. The ignition device or spark plug being located at the richest part of the compressed gas results in quicker and more perfect combustion and higher power efficiency.

The engine of my invention may be termed a uniflow internal combustion engine, as I draw fresh gases into the upper end of a receiving chamber at the upper end of the engine from which they flow downwardly thru a relatively large valve into an intermediate cylinder where they are heated and partly compressed and from which they again flow downwardly into the power cylinder where they are compressed downwardly into the lower end of the power cylinder preparatory to explosion and from which the exhaust gases flow downwardly thru the relatively large exhaust port in the lower cylinder head into the exhaust passage.

It should be understood that while I have shown a simple form of engine having but a single cylinder, my invention is capable of being used as well in a multiple cylinder engine.

One of the important features of my improved engine resides in the fact that I produce a substantially perfect mixture of the gaseous fuel and air supplied to the engine and that before the fuel enters the working or power cylinder the 'vaporizapass the mixed fuel and air on its way to the working cylinder, and the ports thru which the fuel flows from one chamber to the next taken in conjunction with the fact that I provide an intermediate compresslon chamber having a relatively hot bottom wall upon which any incoming unvaporized particles or drops of fuel are deposited, and by which such drops are immediately vaporized. l

A particular object of my invention 1s the production of a practical means for controlling a valve carried by areciprocat ng piston for the purpose of positively closing th valve at the beginning of the compression stroke.

Upon a more complete understanding of my invention it will appear that I am euabled to produce a maximum of power, considering the size of the cylinder and the speed of the engine; that substantially perfect combustion of all the fuel is ensured, whether gasoline, kerosene or heavier oil fuel; that consequently a high power-efficiency is attained and that the engine is exceedingly simple and compact in construction and reasonable in cost.

The engine of my invention is particularly adapted for the high duty service in the production of power required upon farm tractors, as I am enabled to effectively double the power impulses over a similar fourcycle engine, and the method which I employ in passing the aseous fuel thru the engine protects the piston against too high temperatures and ensures substantially continuous running of the engine.

lVhile I make use of three valves, for controlling the gases, only one of these is operable by a cam, the others being operated by the reciprocating movement of the piston and the variations in gas pressures. I

Many more advantageous features and results will be made clear by the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical central sectional view of an engine embodying my invention in a preferred form;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary similar section, illustrating means for oiling some of the internal parts; I

Figure 3 is a detail horizontal section on the line 33 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary side elevation of the engine illustrated in Figure l; and

Figure 5 is a vertical central section of another form of my invention.

In said drawings the power cylinder 1 is vertical and is supported on the frame 2, which is mounted at its lower end on the base 3. The cylinder is open at its upper end and is closed at its lower end by an integral head 5. The cylinder is stationary. A trunk piston 6 projects down into the cylinder -1 through its open end. The piston is carried by horizontal trunnions 7, projecting in opposite directions, at its upper end.

The engine shaft'is horizontal and is arranged centrally below the cylinder 1. It

is mounted in suitable bearings on the frame 1 projects within the upper open end of the trunk piston 6.

The lower end of the trunk piston 6 is 'closed by a head 15.

I provide a large port 17 in the lower nd of the cylinder 13, a similar port 18 in the lower closed end of the trunk piston 6, and a similar port 19 in the lower closed end of the Working cylinder 1.

For controlling the port 19, which is the exhaust port, I provide a suitable coned valve 20 having a vertical stem 21, mounted in a guide 22 in a lower wall 23. Below the head 5 and the wall 23, I arrange an exhaust passage 24 which leads out sidewise to the exhaust connection 25. For operating this valve 20, I providea suitable cam 26 carried by the crank pin 10 and adapted to engage the lower end of the stem 21 and lift the valve at the proper instant to permit the exhaust gases to escape from the cylinder which instant is substantially when the piston 6 has completed two-thirds of its power stroke. N 0 spring is necessary to assist the operation of this valve as it is relatively large and heavy and is seated by the pressure of the gas Within. the cylinder, assisted by gravity.

For controlling the port 18 in the lower end 15 of the trunk piston, I provide a coned valve 27 carried by the piston and seating upwardly. This valve is carried on a stem 28 mounted in the cross bar 29 formed in the lower end of the piston.

The interior 30 of the trunk piston serves as a pump to draw the fuel gases into'the upper cylinder 13 thru a supply pipe or pas sage 31, connected to a suitable carbureting device, not shown, and to cause the gases to be discharged from said upper cylinder into the working cylinder below.

For controlling the port 17 in the lower end 14 of the upper cylinder, I provide a coned valve 32, which like the valve 27,

seats upwardly and I operate this valve,

valve 27 which enters within the lower end of a small central cylinder 34 formed upon and extending upwardly from the valve 32. I provide expansion spring rings 35 in the upper end of the extension stem fitting tightly within the bore of the cylinder 34 so that upon a change in direction of movement between the piston 6 and the valve 32. the valve 32 will be carried with the piston (3 to the limit of its movement in that direction, after which the rings 35 willpermit relative movement between the piston 6 and the cylinder 34:.

The valve 27 is limited in its opening movement by the lower end 36 of the extension stem 33 contacting-with the bar 29. The valve 32 is hung on the plate or cover 12 by an adjustable collar 37, held on the upper end 38 of the cylinder 34;, by a central screw 39, a recess 40 being provided in the plate 12 for receiving the collar, the lower nd of the collar being adapted to engage the bottom of the recess to limit the opening of the valve 32.

The mixed fuel gases are drawn into the cylinder 13 thru the inlet passage 31, from there they are drawn down thru the port 17 into the space 30 between the head 14 and the trunk piston 6. Then they are forced down into the working cylinder 1 by compression as the trunk piston rises and in the process of entering the cylinder 1 these gases blow the spent or exhaust gases, which are within the cylinder 1 down thru the port 19 which at such time is held open by the cam 26.

The cycle of operations is as follows: Beginning with the parts as positioned in Figure 1, we can assume that the compressed charge has just been exploded in the compression space 40 at the lower end of the cylinder 1- between the piston 6 and the head 5.

The pressure of the burning gases forces the trunk piston upward, thus rotating the engine shaft 10 and producing the work which is the object of the engine.

As the piston 6 rises the contents of the space 30 that is between the lower head of the fixed cylinder and the lower end of the trunk piston are compressed more and more until their pressure exceeds the diminishing pressure of the expanding gases in the cylinder 1, at which time the compressed gascs force open the valve 27, and the fresh fuel gas escapes from the space 30 into the cylinder 1 thru the port 15. At this time the exhaust valve 20 is held open by the cam 26 and the incoming fresh gas forces the spent gases downwardly and out thru the port 19. As the port 18 and the valve 27 form an outwardly flared conical passage when the valve is open the incoming fuel gases are projected against the wall of the cylinder 1 and would tend to follow down the wall to the open exhaust port and leave the central portion of the body of exhaust gases more or less undisturbed.

To avoid this efiect and to cause the incoming gases to sweep the spent ases out before them, I rovide a number 0 inwardly curved ba es 41 extending from the lower face of the head 15 and around the edge of the valve 27. These baflies, alternate with clear spaces so that the effect is to cause the entering gases to spread both outwardly and inwardly and evenly ush the exhaust gases out before them. I am enabled by this arrangement to sweep the cylinder clear of the exhaust gases and it is only necessary to time the closure of the valve 20 by the cam 26 to cause it to close at the instant the cylinder is free of spent gases, in order to prevent waste of fresh fuel gas and obtain maximum efficiency.

' One of the most important advantages of my invention is that the fuel gases enter at the top of the engine and always move downwardly thru the engine to the exhaust port at the bottom, consequently any dust or other matter is continuously moved down- I wardly thru the several chambers and out thru the exhaust port. Another advantage is that any fuel which may not be fully vaporized drops down onto the valve 27 which is always maintained quite hot and such fuel is sure to be fully vaporized before the charge enters the cylinder 1. Furthermore, I arran e the spark plug 41 at the lower end of t e cylinder at the region of the heaviest and richest gas and hence, I am enabled to obtain the maximum result in pressure from the burnin gases.

The incoming gases, which are relatively cool, maintain the cylinder 13 and the valve 32 at its lower end, relatively cool and as they enter Within the hollow piston 6 in contact with the cylindrical Well thereof, they also keep this piston cool. Furthermore this cooling effect of the fuel gases prevents the V2ll"6 27 attaining a too high temperature. This valve 27 being at the lower end ofthe piston 6 receives any liquid or unvaporized particles or drops of fuel, which are carried in, particularly When the heavier fuel oils are used, and the valve being quite hot instantly vaporized such fuel so that before this valve opens all of the fuel is fully vaporized.

Another advantage which is now apparent is that the passage of the gases into the relatively large receiving chamber 13, their flow thru the port 17 into the hollow piston 6 and their flow from the hollow piston 6 into the working cylinder 1, all combine to produce a thorough and complete intermixing of the fuel vapors and the air which are drawn in thru the inlet 31, consequently when the gases are compressed in the cylinder 1 they are in substantially perfect combustion condition. I attribute much of my success 1n the economical production of power to this out when the exhaust port opens.

Preferably I close the base of the engine and enclose the connecting rods by cover plates 42 to provide an oil well, and I arrange counter-balance weights 43 on the crank shaft to splash oil up thru the frame and around the connecting rods to the upper end to oil the pins 7 and the several cylindrical surfaces. The oil works down the operating cylindrical surfaces and carries any dust or grit down thru the cylinders and out of the exhaust port. I provide suitable packing rings between the several cylindrical surfaces to properly hold the pressure in the several chambers.

As the bottom wall 23 is exposed to the exhaust gases it is liable to become highly heated, and in order to prevent the lubricating oil burning onto this wall, I arrange a guard plate 44 covering the wall 23 and held spaced therefrom.

Obviously, the cylinder 1 may be cooled in any suitable manner, and in Figure 1 I have shown it as provided with a water cooling chamber 45 surrounding it and the piston 6.

To permit the extension 33 to operate freely in the small cylinder 34, I make the extension 33 hollow and provide a vent hole 46 opening into the intermediate space 30.

In Figure 2, I have illustrated another manner of relieving the small cylinder 34. In this form, I enclose the collar 37 and the chamber 40 by a chambered cover 47, connecting-the interior thereof with the enclosed space at one side of the engine in which one of the connecting rods 11 is housed. As this space is filled with the atomized lubricating oil, the extension 33 and the cylinder 34, now as a pump to draw air ladened with the fuel oil particles into the cylinder 34 and effect the lubrication of the packing rings 35, the collar 37 being provided with an opening 48 in its edge and the bottom of the recess 39 provided with a vent opening 49 entering into the cylinder 34. The cylinder 34 is thus vented or relieved thru said passages and the added advantage is attained of automatically lubricating the. packing ring 35 and cylinder 34.

In Figure 5, I have illustrated another manner of operating the valve which controls the upper or inlet chamber. Instead of providing a vented auxiliary cylinder on the valve 50 which closes the lower end of the chamber, 1 provide a short cylinder 51 opening thru the valve 50 into the compres- S1011 space 30, and which in effect constitutes a suction cup, and I provide a cylindrical head 52 carried on the stem 28 of the valve 27 and adapted to enter the cup 51 as the piston 6 approaches the upper limit of its movement. The piston 52 1s provided with a packing ring 53 which fits tightly within the cylinder 51 and serves to compress the gases in the cylinder 51 sufliciently to forcibly lift the valve 51 and close the port 17 between the space 30 and the inlet chamber 13, if the valve has not already been lifted by the compression of the gases in the space 30 by the rising of the piston 6, and to forcibly open the valve 27 if it has not already been opened by the compression of the gaS within the space 30. In addition to the action of the suction cup in opening the valve 27, it also has the function of positively closing the valve 27 upon the downward or compression stroke of the piston 6. The retarding action of the piston 52 and cup 51, when the piston 6 begins to descend on its compression stroke tends first to prevent the valve 27 moving with the piston 6 thus closing same and then tends to pull down the valve 51 and open the port 17 the suction action of the piston 6 aiding in opening the valve 51 and keeping it open until the space 30 is filled with fresh gas. It is to be noted that the other advantageous features of my invention, as described in relation to Figure 1, are retained in the form shown in Figure 5.

To aid in the control of the valve 50, I support it upon a compression spring 54 surrounding the stem 55, and arranged in a pocket 56, depending from the top plate 12. The stem carries the valve 50 and is provided at its upper end with an adjustable spring abutment 57, guided in said pocket 56.

It will now be apparent that I have not only produced a novel form of internal combustion engine operated in a novel manner, but that I have also produced a new and improved method of manipulation and burn ing of fuel gas for producing power.

The valve 27 being heavy and moving up and down with the piston 6, inertia plays a large part in effecting the operation of same. The valve closes upwardly and having been opened, as the piston approaches the upper limit of its movement by the increasing pressure within the space 30 within the piston and the decreasing pressure in the cylinder 1, it should be closed immediately the piston stops, so as to retain within the cylinder 1 all of the fuel gas which has entered, and so that the gas. within the cylinder 1 shall be meager properly compressed as the piston moves downwardly. It is obvious, as the piston comes to rest and starts down again that the inertia of the valve will cause it to close l 1p wardly as the piston stops and lag behind as the piston starts down, thus adding to the valve closing effect of the auxiliary PIS- ton and cylinder.

As obviously, many other modifications of my invention will readily suggest themselves to one skilled in the art, I donot limit or confine my invention to the specific structures herein shown and described or to the specific steps defined.

I claim:

1. The method of burning fuel gases for the production of pressure which consists in filling a receiving space with the fuel gases the gases entering at the top of said space, slightly heating the gases in said space, removing the gases from the lower end of said space by suction and entering them into a second space at the upper end thereof, slightly compressing the gases within said second space and discharging them from the lower endof said second space into the upper end of a combustion space, compressing the gases in the combustion space by the downward movement of a compression element and causing the compressed gases to be ignited.

2. The method of burning fuel gases for the production of pressure which consists in filling a receiving space with the fuel gases the gases entering at the top of said space, slightly heating the gases in sald space, removing the gases from the lower end of said space by suction and entering them into a second space at the upper end thereof, slightly compressing the gases within sald second space and discharging them from the lower end of said second space into the upper end of a combustion space, compressing the gases in the combustion space by the downward movement of a compression element causing the compressed gases to be ignited and causing the burnt gases to be discharged downwardly from the combustion space.

3. In an internal combustion engine, a power cylinder open at its top and closed at its bottom, a relatively large upwardly. opening valve in the closed end of the cylinder, a vertically movable trunk piston in the cylinder having an open upper end and a closed lower end, a relatively large downwardly opening valve in said closed end, a stationary inlet chamber projecting within the open end of the trunk piston, and closed at' its lower end, a relatively large downwardly opening valve in the lower closed end of the chamber, and means operable by said trunk piston for controlling the opening and closing of said last mentioned valve.

4. In an internal combustion engine, a vertical power cylinder having a relatively large exhaust valve in its lower end, a trunk piston vertically movable in the cylinder, closed at its lower end and open at its upper end, a stationary vertical cylinder, projecting within the open end of the trunk piston, the trunk piston having a relatively large valved port through its lower end entering said power cylinder, a relatively large' the lower end thereof for controlling the escape of exhaust gases therefrom, cam means for opening said valve, a hollow piston vertically movable in said cylinder having an open upper end and a closed lower end, a relatively large the piston, an upward y closing valve controlling said port, a fixed depending cylinder above the power cylinder, its lower end projecting within the trunk piston, the lower end of said depending cylinder provided with a port opening through same into the space within the trunk piston, a valve controlling the port in the bottom end of the piston having a stem extending centrally through the piston, a central auxiliary cylinder within said fixed cylinder, a piston on said stem for engagement in said auxiliary cylinder for operating the valves at the upper and lower ends of the piston.

6. In an internal combustion engine, a vertical power cylinder, a gravity valve at the lower end thereof for controlling the escape of exhaust gases therefrom, cam means for opening said valve, a hollow piston vertically movable in said piston having an upper open end and a closed lower end, a relatively large port in the bottom of the piston, an upwardly closing valve controlling said port, a fixed depending cylinder above the power cylinder, its lower end projecting within the trunk piston, the lower end of said cylinder provided with a port opening through same into the space within the trunk piston, the valve controlling the port in the bottom end of the piston having a stem extending centrally through the piston,

and a central auxiliary cylinder within saidfixed cylinder, a piston on said stem for engagement in said auxiliary cylinder for operating the valve at the upper and lower ends of the piston, and means for venting said auxiliary cylinder.

7. In an internal combustion engine, a vertical power cylinder having an open upper end and a closed lower end, a trunk pistion movable into and out of the open end of the cylinder, a crank shaft below the cylinder, connecting rods at the sides of the cylport in the bottom of inder operatively connecting the shaft and piston, the frame of the engine having enclosed spaces containing said connecting rods, the base of the engine adapted to contain lubricating oil, means carried by the crank shaft for splashing the oil up into said spaces, an auxiliary cylinder above the main cylinder, a valve at the lower end of the trunk piston, an auxiliary piston carried by he said valve and operable within said auxiliary cylinder for effecting the opening and closing of the valve, the upper end of the auxiliary cylinder having communication with one of said connecting rod spaces,

whereby lubricating oil is drawn into said auxiliary cylinder for lubricating same.

8. In an internal combustion engine, a vertical cylinder having an open upper end and a closed lower end, a trunk piston entering the upper open end of the cylinder, said trunk piston closed at its lower end, and moving up and down in the cylinder, a relatively large port in the closed end of the piston, means closing the upper end of the piston, means for supplying fuel gas to the interior of the piston, an upwardly seating valve controlling said port, the inertia of the valve assisting in closing same at the upper limit of movement of the piston.

9. In an internal combustion engine, a power cylinder, a hollow piston o erable in the power cylinder, a stationary head closing the open end of the hollow piston. a valve in said piston controlling the flow of fuel gas from the hol 'ow piston to the power cylinder and co-operating means carried by the piston and the stationaiw head for controlling said valve.

10. In an internal combustion engine a power cylinder, a hollow trunk piston operable in the cylinder. presr-znting a. c'osed end to the ower c 'lindcr, the opposite, end of the piston being open, stationary means for closing the open end of the piston. a valve in the closed end of the piston controlling the flow of fue gas from theinterior ol' the piston to the power cylinder, and co-operating means carried by said piston and said stationary means for controlling said valve.

11. In an internal combustion engine, a vertical power cylinder having an upper open end. a trunk piston operable thru said open end and having a lower c'osed end and an upper open end. a stationary closed cylinder having a head closing the upper open end of the trunk piston and downwardly opening valves carried by said piston and said head for causing the fuel gases to pass thru the trunk piston on their way to the power cylinder.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 11th day of October A. D. 1919.

WILLIAM F. PAGEL. 

